’40s | ’50s
| ’60s | ’70s
| ’80s | ’90s
| ’00s | Witnessing
Change at Tyco | The 'Wow' Factor
| A District Champion | In
Memoriam | And What About You?
Philomene
A. Gates, BL ’42, traces her family’s
Southern history—and recalls her GW Law days—in
A Soft Rebel Yell: From Grits to Gotham (Gridiron
Publishers, 2001): “The last time that I visited the
Law School, I spoke about my first book, ‘Suddenly
Alone,’ and received the Belva Lockwood Award in 1994.
It was wonderful to see how the Law School had grown and
become truly one of the outstanding law schools in the United
States.” Gates still practices in New York in her
own firm, specializing in real estate, matrimonial, and
commercial transactions, as well as with the Legal Aid Society,
of which she was previously vice president. Gates has three
married daughters.
William B. Smith, JD ’55,
an attorney with Dicerkson & Smith Law Group in Virginia
Beach, Va., was named the 2004-05 chair of the Senior Lawyers
Conference of the Virginia State Bar. The conference is
composed of more than 9,000 licensed Virginia lawyers age
55 and older. Its purpose is to address legal issues of
concern to senior citizens and to present educational programs
of interest to senior lawyers. Smith has served on the Virginia
State Bar Council as chair of its litigation section. He
is a former president of the Virginia Beach Bar Association..
C. Sherfy Jones, BL ’61,
was given the Samuel H. Weese Award, the highest honor given
by The American College Endowment Foundation of Bryn Mawr,
Pa., to recognize her contributions to the college and her
help in advancing its mission as a leading nonprofit public
charity dedicated to financial services education. Jones
is president of Jones, Morris and Associates and is a 45-year
resident of Arlington County, Va.
In
May, the Washington Bar Association presented Jack
Olender, LLM ’61, with the Charles Hamilton
Houston Medallion of Merit for his legal achievements and
service to the community. Olender is a malpractice attorney
with Jack H. Olender & Associates.
Hiscock
& Barclay in June named Ronald S. Kareken, JD
’64, a member of its Rochester, N.Y., office.
Richard D. Grauer, JD ’65,
a patent attorney with Rader, Fishman & Grauer in Bloomfield
Hills, Mich., was appointed to the American Arbitration
Association Patent Advisory Council in February. The council’s
goal is to encourage greater use of alternative dispute
resolution instead of litigation in resolving patent disputes.
Grauer also was appointed to the Academy of Court-Appointed
Masters, which promotes the courts’ use of special
masters—outside neutral parties with specialized expertise—to
make objective recommendations to the bench.
Dirigo’s Prisoner: The Life
of an Intelligence Officer (Dorrance Publishing, 2005)
by Albert P.C. Lefebvre, JD ’67,
tells the story of special agent Claude Iver, a one-time
seminary student turned undercover agent in secret government
missions who faces imprisonment in the line of duty. Drawing
on his 30 years of experience with the federal government
serving in the Air Force as well as a congressional liaison
officer, the author says legal issues are a key focus of
the novel. A member of the District of Columbia and Maine
Bars, Lefebvre resides in Portsmouth, N.H.
To recognize his efforts in a lost policy
insurance coverage case that resulted in a settlement totaling
$2.2 billion and the creation of a trust for 40,000 past
and future asbestos exposure victims in the San Francisco
area, James N. Penrod, JD ’67, received
the California Litigation of the Year Award for 2004. The
award was given by California Lawyer magazine.
He is a partner with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. He also
is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the
American Board of Trial Advocates, the Association of Trial
Lawyers of America, and the Association of Business Trial
Lawyers. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America
since its first publication in 1987.
Roger
C. Spaeder, JD ’70, was named a fellow of
the American College of Trial Lawyers in March. He was inducted
at the college’s spring meeting in La Quinta, Calif.,
before an audience of more than 700 people. Lawyers must
have a minimum of 15 years of trial experience, mastered
the art of advocacy, and have high standards of ethical
conduct to be considered for fellowship. Spaeder is a partner
in the Washington firm of Zuckerman Spaeder, practicing
complex criminal and civil litigation. He formerly worked
in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of
Columbia.
Formerly
director of the Public Defender Service for the District
of Columbia, Francis Carter, JD ’72,
joined the Washington office of Zuckerman Spaeder as a partner
in February. Carter was the first lawyer to represent Monica
Lewinsky. He has represented clients in legal and professional
malpractice cases and obtained acquittals for several former
government employees in high profile cases involving multicount
indictments of business fraud, conspiracy, and contract
fraud.
Drawing
from experience in the courtroom, Steven Selzer,
BA ’69, JD ’72, published By George!
Mr. Washington’s Guide to Civility Today (Andrews
McMeel, 2000) and gives presentations on civility. The book
is inspired by 110 rules of behavior Washington wrote at
age 14. Selzer has been in private practice in Montgomery
County, Md., for 25 years.
A partner specializing in complex commercial
litigation and dispute resolution with Tonkon Torp in Portland,
Ore., Daniel H. Skerritt, LLM ’72,
was included in the Chambers USA America’s Leading
Lawyers for Business 2004 directory as a leader in
his field.
Michael S. Wolly, BA ’69,
JD ’72, is president of the greater Washington
and Virginia chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation
of America. He previously served the chapter as a member
of its board of directors and vice president for development.
Wolly is general counsel of the National Conference of Firemen
and Oilers of the Service Employees International Union,
the Railroad Coordinating Council of the International Brotherhood
of Electrical Workers, and the American Train Dispatchers
Association. He is special counsel to the Brotherhood of
Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen Division of the Teamsters
Union.
The American Bar Association selected
“Client Perjury: When Do You Know the Defendant is
Lying?” by J. Vincent Aprile II, LLM’73,
as one of the best articles published in 2004 by the ABA
in magazines, journals, and newsletters generated by its
sections, forums, and divisions. The article first appeared
in the fall 2004 issues of Criminal Justice, a
quarterly publication of the ABA’s Criminal Justice
Section, and an abridged version was reprinted in “The
Best Articles Published by the ABA” issue of the ABA
magazine GP Solo. Aprile practices with Lynch, Cox, Gilman
and Mahan in Louisville, Ky.
The Jewish Institute of Religion of Hebrew
Union College appointed David R. Berz, BA ’70,
JD ’73, to its New York Board of Overseers.
He is a partner of the Washington office of Weil, Gotshal
& Manges, where he heads the firm’s environmental
group and focuses on the bankruptcy practice. He is an authority
on U.S. and international environmental law and was recognized
by Chambers Publications as a leading lawyer in his field.
He is the co-author of a three-volume environmental treatise,
Environmental Law in Real Estate and Business Transactions.
Berz is active in numerous Jewish organizations in the Washington
area and is former president of Washington Hebrew Congregation.
In February, International Law Firms—a
business firm referral network—named Howard
G. Slavit, JD ’73, managing partner of Saul
Ewing in Washington, as its chairman. Slavit previously
was chairman of the ILF’s marketing committee and
overall coordinator of two of its regional conferences.
He has more than 30 years of experience assisting domestic
and international clients in regulatory, litigation, corporate,
transactional, trademark, copyright, and government contracts
matters. He is a partner in Saul Ewing’s business
and litigation departments and also serves as outside general
counsel to U.S. companies and as U.S. outside general counsel
to foreign companies.
Susan
Linden McGreevy, JD ’74, was named the “Best
of the Bar” by the Kansas City Business Journal
in December. She is the only construction attorney to be
selected every year since the award began. McGreevy is the
chair of the construction law practice group of Husch &
Eppenberger in Kansas City. She is a member of the American
Bar Association, the Kansas Bar Association, the Missouri
Bar, The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, and the
Association of Women Lawyers, of which she is past president.
In Minneapolis, Minn., Ken Levinson,
JD ’75, joined Faegre & Benson as a partner
in its tax group. He focuses on tax planning issues for
multinational business and on tax planning in the captive
insurance company area. He previously was managing director
in the Midwest region in the captive insurance and warranty
practice of KPMG. He also has worked at the Office of Chief
Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service, Northwest Airlines,
and the Marriott Corporation.
Gregory C. Yadley, JD ’75,
chair of Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick’s corporate
practice group, was given the Parke Wright III Award in
January. The award is presented annually to a member of
Leadership Tampa Alumni who has demonstrated exceptional
leadership and community contribution. He has served as
chair of the Arts Council of Hillsborough County, Tampa
Bay Business Committee for the Arts, and the Tampa/Colorado
Ballet Alliance. He also is on the board of directors of
the Florida Orchestra and is a founding member of Friends
of Tampa Public Art Foundation. He is co-editor of the Florida
Bar’s Florida Corporate Practice Manual and
co-director of the annual Federal Securities Institute.
In April, Law Bulletin Publishing Co.
announced that Janine M. Landow-Esser, JD ’76,
a partner in the Chicago firm Quarles & Brady was recommended
by her peers as one of the top lawyers licensed in Illinois
in the area of environmental law. She advises buyers, sellers,
and lenders in environmental aspects of various transactions
and represents manufacturers and other regulated entities
on environmental compliance issues. Prior to entering private
practice, she served with the Department of Energy.
Quarles & Brady in Madison, Wisc.,
announced in November that Nicholas J. Seay, JD
’77, was listed in The Best Lawyers in
America. Seay specializes in intellectual property
law.
Bradd Siegel, JD ’77,
in November was named in The Best Lawyers in America,
a publication in which he has been listed every year since
1987 in the area of labor and employment lawyers. He is
a partner with Porter Wright in Columbus, Ohio. He has more
than 25 years of experience in labor and employment law
litigation on behalf of companies and their managers in
state and federal courts. Siegel was elected a fellow of
the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers in 1999.
President George W. Bush appointed Bobby
R. Burchfield, JD ’79, to serve as commissioner
of the Antitrust Modernization Commission in December. The
commission was created in accord with the Antitrust Modernization
Commission Act of 2002 and consists of 12 members. Burchfield
is co-partner-in-charge of McDermott Will & Emery’s
Washington office and chairs the firm’s complex litigation
practice. He has been recognized as a top trial lawyer in
the D.C. area by Legal Times; is highly rated by
Chambers USA and Chambers Global; and
is listed in Best Lawyers in America. He previously
served as general counsel to the campaign of President George
H. W. Bush and clerked for Judge Ruggero J. Aldisert of
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Giants of the Delft: Johannes Vermeer
and the Natural Philosophers: The Parallel Search for Knowledge
during the Age of Discovery (Bucknell, 2003) by Robert
D. Huerta, JD ’79, was selected as a finalist
for the 2004 Mitchell Prize. The honor is given every two
years for a book that has made a major contribution to art
history. Huerta’s Vermeer and Plato: Painting
the Ideal will be published by Bucknell in 2005.
James F. Nagle, LLM ’81,
SJD ’86, a federal contracts lawyer in Seattle,
received the life service award from the Boards of Contract
Appeals Bar Association.
First
appointed as a superior court judge in District 18 in 1993,
Catherine Caldwell Eagles, JD ’82,
was elected to another eight-year term in November. She
and her husband, Bill, live in Greensboro, N.C., with their
two teenage sons.
In March, Roy L. Bernstein, JD
’83, joined the Chicago firm Arnstein &
Lehr as partner. He focuses on real estate and environmental
areas. He formerly worked with Michael Best & Friedrich.
Bernstein has served as counsel on numerous Superfund cases
and has represented clients in environmental compliance
matters, practiced before the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, and Illinois
Pollution Control Board.
Martha McQuade, BA ’75,
JD ’84, married Marni Byrum in July at The
Glenerin Inn in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. McQuade is
a past president of the Women’s Bar Association of
the District of Columbia and the Virginia Commission of
Women and Minorities in the Legal System. She has led the
Virginia family law firm of McQuade & Hite since 1997.
The couple resides in Alexandria, Va.
Managing partner of Cozen O’Connor’s
Washington office, Barry Boss, JD ’85,
co-wrote Federal Criminal Practice (James Publishing,
2005) a treatise for criminal defense attorneys. The book
provides practical advice on federal criminal prosecution,
including arguments and procedures in the field. Drawing
on examples from cases, the authors present strategies concerning
pretrial release, alternatives to prosecution, discovery
and plea bargaining, and trial and sentencing. Also an adjunct
professor at GW Law School, Boss is vice chair of the American
Bar Association Criminal Justice Section’s Corrections
and Sentencing Committee and was named a “top lawyer”
for criminal defense by Washingtonian magazine.
An intellectual property litigation specialist
at the Irvine, Calif., office of Howrey, Simon, Arnold &
White, William Rooklidge, LLM ’85,
was named president of the American Intellectual Property
Law Association, a group of more than 16,000 intellectual
property lawyers, law students, and patent agents.
In New York, Mound Cotton Wollan &
Greengrass named James M. Dennis, JD ’86,
an associate. He focuses on business and commercial law,
contracts, insurance law, commercial insurance, and reinsurance.
Director of graduate criminal justice
and legal studies at the California University of Pennsylvania,
Charles Nemeth, LLM ’87, is the author
of Private Security and the Law (Butterworth Heinemann,
2005), a textbook analysis of significant practices in the
security industry that relate to law regulation, and licensure;
Private Security and Public Safety: A Community-Based
Approach (Prentice Hall, 2005), which discusses how
private security companies are increasingly taking on community
law enforcement duties; and Criminal Law (Prentice
Hall, 2004), which features extensive case studies.
Kenneth A. Gelfarb, JD ’88,
was named a “top lawyer” in the real estate
law category by Washingtonian magazine. He is a
partner with Margolius, Mallios and Rider and resides with
his wife and two daughters in Bethesda, Md.
In
December, New York firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and
Dorr named John M. Hintz, JD ’88,
a partner in its litigation department. He previously was
with Fish & Neave for 16 years as an associate and a
partner. Hintz specializes in major patent disputes and
has transactional, licensing, and counseling experience.
Honored
for 25 years of service to the Jewish community, Rabbi
Jan Caryl Kaufman, JD ’88, was conferred
an honorary doctor of divinity degree by the Hebrew Union
College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York. She is
director of special projects for the Rabbinical Assembly,
an international association of conservative rabbis. Kaufman
previously was asocial Hillel director at the University
of Maryland and a chaplain and teacher at the Charles E.
Smith Jewish Day School of Greater Washington.
Karen A. McGee, JD ’88,
in January was named a partner in the Washington office
of Barnes & Thornburg. She is a member of the international
practice group; the business, tax, and real estate department;
and the intellectual property department. She focuses on
antidumping and countervailing proceedings, customs law,
export controls, trade in defense articles and services,
and foreign assets controls.
Washington firm Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein
& Fox elected Robert W. Esmond, JD ’89,
to its executive committee. Esmond is a director in the
firm’s biotechnology and chemical group, specializing
in preparing and prosecuting patent applications and counseling
clients on Abbreviated New Drug Application filings, intellectual
property portfolio strategies, and licensing and research
agreements.
Charles K. Adkins-Blanch, JD ’90,
was sworn in as an immigration judge at a ceremony at the
U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals in Arlington, Va., in
October. Prior to his appointment, Adkins-Blanch served
as general counsel for the Executive Office for Immigration
Review. He also has worked for the Board of Immigration
Appeals and was a judicial law clerk under the Attorney
General’s Honor Law Program. He is a member of the
Virginia and District of Columbia Bars.
After earning her master of laws degree
in trial advocacy from Temple University in 2004, Margaret
Fine, JD ’91, now is a deputy city solicitor
in the child welfare unit for the City of Philadelphia’s
Law Department.
The Vanguard Group named Deanna
Flores, JD ’91, a principal in February.
She is responsible for tax compliance and strategy within
the organization’s legal department. Before relocating
to Havertown, Pa., Flores was associate counsel at the Investment
Company Institute in Washington. In May, Flores became vice
chair for the Investment Company Committee of the American
Bar Association Section of Taxation.
Michael Mallow, JD ’91,
a business litigation partner with Kirkpatrick & Lockhart
Nicholson Graham, was included in the “Top 20 Under
40” listing of the Daily Journal Extra. Mallow
has been with the firm since 1998 and serves as the firm’s
Los Angeles litigation department coordinator and also spearheaded
the launch of the firm’s California Unfair Competition
Law Practice.
Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel in Chattanooga,
Tenn., named Paul S. Weidlich, JD ’92,
a shareholder. He is a member of the firm’s intellectual
property group and focuses on patents, trademarks, trade
secrets, and copyrights. He and his wife, Ashley
Paul Weidlich, JD ’92, and their two sons,
August and Alex, live in Signal Mountain, Tenn.
A
principal in the Baltimore firm Miles & Stockbridge,
Sky Woodward, JD ’92, was named one
of the city’s emerging business leaders by the Baltimore
Business Journal in its “40 Under 40” list.
She specializes in indoor environmental quality and “toxic”
mold cases. Woodward is president-elect of the Maryland
Defense Counsel and serves on the executive committee of
the board of directors for Downtown Baltimore Child Care.
The Vanguard Group named Edward
C. Delk, JD ’93, principal in February. He
provides legal advice and counsel concerning federal securities
laws and monitoring legislative and regulatory developments
affecting the group. He joined the organization in 2000
as associate counsel in its legal division. Delk resides
in Radnor, Pa.
Brendan C. Fox, JD ’93,
joined Dechert of as partner in its Washington office January.
He practices in the firm’s financial services group.
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush appointed Darrin
P. Gayles, JD ’93, to the Miami-Dade County
Court in April of 2004. A resident of Miami Shores, Fla.,
Gayles previously was an assistant U.S. attorney and assistant
district counsel with the Immigration and Naturalization
Service.
Bloomfield Hills, Mich., firm Dawda, Mann,
Mulcahy & Sadler elected Gary A. Kravitz, JD
’93, as a member in January. He formerly
was an associate with the firm. Kravitz concentrates on
commercial real estate, corporate business, and municipal
law matters. Before joining the firm, he was a prosecuting
attorney in Oakland County and with the Mineral Policy Center
in Washington. Kravitz is pursuing a master of laws degree
in taxation from Wayne State University Law School.
Dark
Harbor (Warner 2005) a murder mystery draws on the
legal knowledge of author David Hosp, JD ’94.
It follows Scott Finn, a Boston lawyer whose career and
family are put in danger when his beautiful co-worker, who
also is his ex-lover, is found dead in Boston Harbor. Hosp
was included in Boston Magazine’s list of
rising stars in the Massachusetts legal profession in its
May edition. He also was profiled in Massachusetts Super
Lawyer Magazine.
The Bureau of National Affairs’
Corporate Practice Series published “Annual Reporting
Under the Federal Securities Laws,” co-written by
Paul Mamalian, BA ’91, JD ’94.
He is assistant general counsel of Choice Hotels International,
which franchises hotels under the Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites,
and Econo Lodge brands, among others. He is responsible
for corporate, securities, trademark, advertising, and e-commerce
matters. Mamalian and his wife, Cyndy, live in Rockville,
Md., with their children, Alexandra and Matthew.
Robert S. Collins, JD ’95,
joined Whiteford, Taylor & Preston as counsel in its
business and corporate and technology intellectual property
groups in its Baltimore office in August. He previously
was a corporate and intellectual property partner at Gordon
& Glickson in Chicago, where he represented privately
held companies in corporate governance and operational issues.
He is active in the American and Maryland State Bar Associations,
is a member of the Chicago Council of Foreign Relations
and was a member of the planning committee for the Great
Lakes Venture Capital Conference and volunteered for the
Springboard Venture Capital Conference.
Marcelo N. Corpuz III, MPH ’95,
JD ’95, an associate in the Milwaukee office
of Quarles & Brady’s health care practice group,
was named one of Nightingale’s “Outstanding
Young Health Care Lawyers” for 2004. He also has been
listed in “Who’s Who in American Law.”
Corpuz resides in Menomonee Falls, Wisc.
An associate with Burns & Levinson
and a member of its business litigation and labor, employment,
and employee benefits groups, Mark F. Murphy, JD
’95, was appointed a member of the Boston
Bar Journal’s board of editors. He serves a three-year
term. Murphy co-wrote “Recent Developments in Massachusetts
Wage Act Claims” in the publication’s May/June
2004 issue. He concentrates on general commercial litigation
and employment disputes.
Whiteford, Taylor & Preston named
Dino C. La Fiandra, JD ’95, a partner
in January. He focuses on land use and real estate development.
La Fiandra resides in Owings Mills, Md.
In December, Walter W. Palmer,
JD ’95, was admitted to the Brazilian Bar,
Rio de Janeiro Division. In January, he and his wife, (Angela)
Cristina Pinheiro-Palmer, LLM ’92,
opened Pinheiro Palmer Advogados, an intellectual property
firm, in Rio de Janeiro.
Alejandro
Brito, JD ’96, was named partner by Zarco
Einhorn Salkowski & Brito, a franchise law firm in Miami.
The firm represents franchisees in litigation and other
forms of dispute resolution and has clients in the restaurant,
hotel, and service industries. The firm represents franchisees
in the United States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and
throughout the Caribbean, Central America, and South America.
Blank Rome elected Alan M. Freeman,
JD ’96, a partner in January. He is a member
of the firm’s commercial litigation and maritime practice
groups in the Washington office. Freeman resides in Potomac,
Md.
A staff judge advocate at the Defense
Language Institute Foreign Language Center at Presidio of
Monterey in Monterey, Calif., John L. Clifton IV,
LLM ’97, was promoted to the rank of colonel
in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps in
April.
M.
Chris Fabricant, JD ’97, wrote Busted!
Drug War Survival Skills (forthcoming HarperCollins),
which will be released in August. The book is a guide to
protecting civil liberties and surviving the criminal justice
system, using humor to reach a young, mainstream audience
and reduce the potential criminal justice consequences of
drug use. The book simplifies complex areas of Fourth Amendment
law, criminal procedure, drug possession law, and basic
civil liberties. The author discusses disenfranchisement
and the racial and social inequities he argues are a result
of the war on drugs. More information is available at www.drugwarsurvival.com.
Chicago firm Bell, Boyd & Lloyd in
January named Thor W. Ketzback, LLM ’97,
an associate. A member of the environmental, health, and
safety group, he concentrates on all areas of environmental
law, specifically on Clean Air Act counseling and litigation.
The Philadelphia Bar Association’s
Young Lawyer Division honored Kathy Ochroch, JD
’97, with the Craig M. Perry Award to recognize
her pro bono work and community activities. The event took
place in March. Ochroch is an associate and pro bono coordinator
with Blank Rome.
Stan Davis, JD ’98,
former deputy chief of staff and chief legal counsel for
Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, joined the Madison office of Quarles
& Brady in February. He is part of the firm’s
litigation and government relations practice groups. He
serves on the boards of directors for the University of
Wisconsin-La Crosse Alumni Association and the Charles Hamilton
Houston Institute. He is chairman of the University of Wisconsin-La
Crosse Multicultural Alumni Advisory Board and is a member
of the 100 Black Men of Madison. Davis resides in DeForest,
Wisc.
On Feb. 23, Joseph Mastrosimone,
JD ’98, and his wife, Gina Spade, welcomed
their first child, Zachary, into their family. The family
resides in Washington. Mastrosimone is senior counsel to
the chairman of the National Labor Relations Board.
Formerly a trial and appellate attorney
with the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia,
Michael Starr, JD ’98, joined Coburn
and Schertler as of counsel, concentrating on criminal defense
and civil litigation.
Formerly associate counsel of MicroStrategy,
a software company in McLean, Va., Daria Williams,
JD ’99, now is technology transactions counsel
in the technology and network law group at MCI in Washington.
She resides in Oxon Hill, Md.
Oliver
A. Beaubeau, JD ’01, joined Galbut &
Hunter of Phoenix in March 2004 as an associate. He represents
clients in commercial litigation matters including securities,
antitrust, and real estate issues.
In Tucker Ellis & West’s Cleveland
office, Janice R. Gambaccini, JD ’01,
joined as an associate and a member of the firm’s
business group. She focuses on employee benefits and health
care law and is a member of the American, Cleveland, and
Virginia Bar Associations as well as the American Health
Lawyers Association.
Suzanne (Williamson) Hixenbaugh,
JD ’03, joined Faegre & Benson’s
Colorado real estate practice as an associate.
Phelps Dunbar named Sunni D. Jones,
JD ’03, an associate in its New Orleans office.
She concentrates on labor and employment and is admitted
to practice in Louisiana.
Erik
Petersen, JD ’03, an environmental attorney
in the Washington office of Bracewell Giuliani, received
a 2005 Burton Award for Legal Achievement in April. He was
recognized for excellence in legal writing and analysis
for “Corporate Environmental Disclosures: Old Complaints,
New Expectations,” an article co-written by Petersen
that appeared in the September 2004 issue of Business
Law International. As an associate with Bracewell,
Petersen focuses on environmental issues in the regulated,
transactional, and litigation arenas.
Wildman Harrold Allen & Dixon of Chicago
named Ashanti L. Madlock, JD ’04,
an associate in its employment and labor practice.
Christina Wilkes, JD ’04,
an Equal Justice Works Fellow, was recognized for providing
legal services to under-represented individuals, causes,
and communities at the first Fellows Reunion and Leadership
Conference in March. The fellows are sponsored by Greenburg
Traurig and the Florida Bar Foundation. Wilkes is serving
her two-year fellowship at Just Neighbors Immigrant Ministry
in Arlington, Va., providing immigration legal services
and advocacy to unaccompanied immigrant children in the
region.
Witnessing Change at Tyco
Ask John S.
Jenkins Jr., JD ’94, what it’s like
to work at Tyco International these days, and there’s
no hesitation in his voice. “It’s great,”
states the electronic and medical supply conglomerate’s
newly appointed vice president and corporate secretary.
“The environment is very collegial and everyone is
committed to the highest standards of integrity.”
Brighter skies have indeed arrived for Tyco, which Jenkins
says has been hard at work transforming itself from “a
holding company to a best-in-class operating company.”
Now under new management, Tyco has fast
become a model of corporate governance. Jenkins, who joined
the conglomerate in June 2003 as senior litigation counsel,
explains, “A dramatic and fundamental change took
place at Tyco starting from the day that Ed Breen joined
the company as chairman and chief executive officer. The
management philosophy, the ethical principles, and the corporate
governance programs he's brought to the company are an example
of best in practice corporate governance for any publicly
traded company.”
Jenkins’ affiliation with Tyco began
in early 2003, when he began representing the conglomerate
as outside counsel while working as a commercial litigator
at McGuire Woods. “I was commuting weekly between
Tysons, Va., and Manhattan, managing a portfolio of cases,
when I was asked to join the company on a full-time basis,”
he says. “The transition was challenging, as Tyco
was then facing a meaningful number of securities claims
arising out of the activities of the former management.
At any one time, my portfolio included more than three dozen
securities cases plus a similar number of related cases
and regulatory and governmental investigations.”
Jenkins has witnessed a swift transformation
at Tyco, following a series of bold changes designed to
restore the company’s reputation as a highly respected
corporate entity. “Tyco replaced its entire board
of directors with independent directors in the space of
one year, which, to my knowledge, is a first in corporate
history,” he states. The industrial giant also added
a senior vice president for corporate governance, created
an ombudsman office to field and investigate complaints
involving violation of ethical behavior, and adopted a new
employee guide to ethical conduct, which was rolled out
via an extensive training program to all 250,000 Tyco employees
worldwide.
“I enjoy being part of a team that
is really having an impact on the performance of this company,”
says Jenkins, who is responsible for security matters, public
finance issues, regulatory and corporate compliance, and
corporate entity maintenance. Jenkins also plays a key role
in coordinating various projects with the company’s
board of directors and manages the annual shareholders meeting.
He says that his ability to perform well
under the toughest of circumstances was fine-tuned in law
school. “I learned as a GW Law student that no matter
how difficult, complex, or challenging the task is, if you
put in the effort and the time necessary to master something,
that effort will be rewarded,” states Jenkins, who
won the Charles Glover Prize for attaining the highest GPA
as a third-year law student.
Jenkins also attributes his fortitude
to his 13-year stint in the U.S. Navy. He served four years
as a line officer driving warships, including a 1989-90
deployment to the Persian Gulf, and nine years as an officer
in the Navy’s office of the judge advocate general.
“I started out as a court-martial attorney in Norfolk,
Va., and concluded my service as legislative counsel to
the Secretary of the Navy in the Pentagon,” he says.
In the early 1990s, he attended GW Law
School as part of the Navy’s funded legal education
program. “I chose GW for two reasons,” he explains.
“It’s a nationally recognized legal education
institution that ranks consistently as one of the top 20
law schools in the United States and has a long history
of educating members of the armed forces.” His father,
John Jenkins, was a familiar face on campus for many years,
serving as GW Law’s well-loved associate dean for
administrative affairs. “I wanted to be a lawyer from
a very early age, because I saw first hand from my father
what an enjoyable profession it is,” he says.
Jenkins enjoyed his days at GW Law. “I
had some of the most colorful professors, who brought a
real level of academic superiority to the classroom,”
he reflects. “They provided me with a fantastic educational
base in the practice of law.”
He is now putting that knowledge to work
at Tyco, helping to ensure that the business continues to
grow and thrive. “You strive to do the best you can
with the opportunities that are presented to you,”
says Jenkins, who lives just outside of Princeton, N.J.,
the new site of Tyco’s executive offices, with wife
Karen and daughters Kelly, 13, and Katherine, 11. “To
be able to contribute in any respect to Tyco’s ability
to maintain its position as market leader in so many fields,
while ensuring the highest standards of integrity and operational
excellence, is a rewarding experience.”
—Jamie L. Freedman
The 'Wow' Factor
Photo by Claire Duggan
|
Lara Levinson,
JD ’93, always
knew she would be a lawyer. Her father was a law professor
at Vanderbilt University. She also knew that she would enjoy
public service. Her mother was an emergency room nurse.
And Levinson realized that GW was a good match for her goals.
“The law school encourages federal careers and working
in nonprofits,” says this Nashville native.
While Levinson had no doubts what she
would do, where she works still surprises her after three
years on the job. “When people hear where I work,
their first reaction is always ‘Wow,’”
says Levinson. “They can’t believe it.”
Levinson can hardly believe it either, despite many impressive
previous positions.
Immediately after graduation, she clerked
for Anita B. Brody, U.S. District Judge in Eastern Pennsylvania,
and then served as a litigation associate with Wiley, Rein
& Fielding in Washington. She taught legal research
and writing and advanced evidence as an adjunct professor
of the GW Law School, and she worked as a trial attorney
for the Department of Justice in the Civil Division, Commercial
Litigation Branch.
She even worked at the White House during
the last year of the Clinton administration, vetting candidates
for cabinet, diplomatic, and judicial appointments. “It
was a great time to be there because of the nontraditional
nominees,” Levinson says. And yes, she met the President
several times in receiving lines.
But Levinson says where she works now
elicits as much enthusiasm as the White House.
Levinson is associate general counsel
of the National Gallery of Art, one of the most beloved
institutions in Washington, D.C., and one of the most visited
art galleries in the world. The gallery comprises two very
different buildings and a sculpture garden. In the neoclassical
West Building, more than 100 galleries contain 13th- to
19th-century works. The airy and spacious East Building
houses modern art by Picasso, Matisse, Miró, and
others in an I.M. Pei-designed trapezoidal structure.
Levinson admits that she lacks a formal
art education. “Fortunately, that wasn’t a job
requirement,” she says. “They were looking for
a good legal fit.” After only three rounds of interviews,
Levinson was hired as assistant general counsel in 2002.
A year later, she was promoted to associate general counsel.
She is one of five attorneys on staff in an office Levinson
describes as “professional and warm.”
The Office of the General Counsel works
on issues involving the gallery’s unusual status.
The federal government appropriates funds for the maintenance
and operation of the gallery, while all art is donated to
the gallery or purchased with funds from private donors.
Levinson also deals with conflicts of interest, personnel,
and intellectual property rights issues. Her research and
findings affect what the gallery uses in catalogs and brochures.
“I use a lot of the information I learned in Professor
Schechter’s copyright class,” she says.
Beyond her legal work at the gallery,
Levinson chairs a committee on accessibility at the gallery
and serves on a committee engaged in selecting candidates
for competitive internships at the gallery.
She also stays involved with students
and alumni at GW. Levinson helped plan the 10-year reunion
for her class, is on the Law School’s alumni board
of directors, and she was active on the search committee
to select a new dean.
Levinson offers advice for students and
young professionals. “I recommend that students get
the best academic experience they can in law school and
then develop skills to be a good, decent lawyer. I tell
everyone to be persistent and look for opportunities,”
she says. “I never could have hoped or dreamed to
be working here.”
Yet, when Levinson first visited GW in
1990, she made one detour outside of the scheduled events
for prospective students. She walked over to the National
Gallery of Art to see the 1990 Matisse in Morocco, a landmark
exhibition highlighting the artist’s years in North
Africa between 1912 and 1913. As a memento of her trip,
Levinson bought a poster. “It’s called the ‘The
Casbah Gate,’” she says. “It’s a
scene from a window with deep reds, blues, and greens. I
just love it.” The poster by Henri Matisse still hangs
in her home.
Ironically, before becoming one of the
greatest painters of the 20th century, Matisse worked as
a law clerk.
—Kathryn McKay
A District Champion
Photo by Claire Duggan
|
Jeanette A.
Michael, JD ’75,
grew up thinking that being a lawyer was as noble as being
a politician. Back then, she was naïve enough not to
know that some looked at both professions with a measure
of cynicism. Today, the 55-year-old is smart enough to appreciate
the collective good that can be done by straddling both
worlds.
Currently, Michael serves as executive
director of the D.C. Lottery and Charitable Games Control
Board—one of the few District government agencies
that generates revenue. Under the purview of the city's
chief financial officer, Michael exceeds her goals by empowering
her employees. “In my role, it is imperative that
I communicate where the lottery must be two to five years
from now. Then, I must keep my employees informed, focused,
and motivated to work effectively and efficiently to accomplish
our goals.”
Michael maintains the DCLB's integrity
throughout her work. “You cannot have the perception
of anything negative in the gaming industry,” she
says. “Integrity is our lifeline and without it, we
would not be able to sell tickets to raise revenue to transfer
to the District’s General Fund.”
DCLB is not solely about the bottom line;
it is the licensing agent for all charitable gaming in the
District, and nonprofit organizations raise millions annually
to provide services and programs that support the social
safety net of the city.
Leading DCLB is one role for Michael,
whose career is packed with public service on the legal
and political fronts.
The New York City native remembers handing
out flyers as a little girl to help her uncle in his fight
to win a local assemblyman position. Her enthusiasm carried
through to high school, where Michael was elected president
of all of her classes and served as the first student body
president of Mother Cabrini High School.
“I remember spending time
with my grandfather, father, and uncles talking politics,”
Michael says. Her aunt also was a federal district court
judge and her uncle, who ran for assemblyman, was a lawyer.
“Politics and law were commonplace in my family. For
me, it was only natural to become a lawyer and politically
active.”
She earned her bachelor’s degree
in political science from Manhattanville College in 1972,
and then headed south to The George Washington University
Law School.
“It was a time of change,”
she recalls. “I believed that lawyers had the ability
to significantly impact the community and earning my law
degree was, simply, the next step.”
After earning her law degree, Michael
worked at the Consumer Product Safety Commission, before
dabbling in her own private practice. But neither resonated
enough for her to stick around, and she eventually met future
D.C. Mayor Marion Barry.
Her ties to Barry, combined with her own
grassroots campaigning, forged the start of her career in
politics. She served on a number of D.C. government boards
and held high-level positions, including chief of staff
to Barry.
Michael says she learned about the inner
workings of big-city politics, and those days reinforced
her core beliefs, while burnishing her image inside the
beltway.
Her first foray into the lottery business
came in the mid-1980s when she was named as its first general
counsel. When she returned in 2001, Michael was ready for
a bigger challenge as DCLB’s leader.
Under her stewardship, the agency has
hiked its revenues from an average of $213 million a year
between fiscal years 1992–2002 to $238.5 in the past
two fiscal years. She did it by instituting new games, recruiting
new lottery agents, and attracting more players.
She managed this while battling breast
cancer, a fight she proudly says she is winning.
Michael also is a founder of the Black
Law Alumni Association and served as its first president.
Throughout her career, Michael has continued to be active
with the Law School. Currently, she serves on the GW Law
Alumni Board and GW Alumni Association Board. In addition,
the GW Board of Trustees of recently nominated Michael for
election as an alumni trustee.
It’s all part and parcel of her
personality, giving back whenever possible.
“Public service is who I am. I understand
the obstacles. It’s something I really love to do.”
—Christan Toto
In Memoriam
1951
Frank L. Bowron, JD '51
Feb. 8, 2005
Casper, Wyo.
1953
Paul J. Ethington, JD '53
Aug. 17, 2003
Troy, Mich.
William R. St. George, JD '53
Dec. 17, 2004
San Diego, Calif.
1958
Edith Carter Baum, JD '58
Aug. 7,
2004
Arlington, Va.
1959
Warren H. Rotert, JD '59
Dec. 19, 2004
Ramsey, N.J.
1982
Janice Platner, JD '82
March 15, 2005
Provincetown, Mass.
1997
Linda C. Reese, JD '97
June 20, 2004
Port Lavaca, Texas
2005
Elizabeth Prostic, JD '05
March 31, 2005
Washington, D.C.
|
 Members
of the Law School community wore yellow arm bands
at the diploma ceremony in May in honor of Elizabeth
Prostic, JD ’05, a remarkable student
and friend. A devoted wife to Michael Lundblad and
mother to daughter Harper, born June 10, 2004, Prostic
passed away March 31 after battling stage-four metastatic
breast cancer. A skilled debater, she balanced evening
classes at the Law School with being a managing
director of Sonnenschein, Nath and Rosenthal’s
lobbying practice. Prostic was passionate about
bipartisan political action, and worked for Sen.
Bob Dole (R-Kan.), Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
and the Commerce Department. She also was an advocate
for women in science. On June 4, more than 30 people
represented “Team Lizzie” in the Susan
G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation’s National
Race for the Cure. Her husband is spearheading the
effort to launch a Web site in her honor; www.metacancer.org
combines information, art, and poetry to emphasize
movement and hope—a fitting tribute to a lively
and graceful former dancer who was constantly in
motion.
|
And What About You?
Please write and tell us about your career accomplishments and personal milestones. (If you’ve changed your name since you attended GW, please include your former name.) Send your news and a photo you can spare to:
GW LAW SCHOOL MAGAZINE
The George Washington University
2121 Eye Street, N.W., #512
Washington, D.C. 20052
Or call up www.gwmagazine.com
